In the latter half of the 20th century, Iowa's agricultural economy made the transition to a diversified economy of advanced manufacturing, processing, financial services, information technology, biotechnology, and green energy production.[6][7] Iowa is the 26th most extensive in land area and the 30th most populous of the 50 United States. Its capital and largest city by population is Des Moines. Iowa has been listed as one of the safest states in which to live.[8] Its nickname is the Hawkeye State.[9]

Geology and terrain

Iowa's bedrock geology generally increases in age from west to east. In northwest Iowa, Cretaceous bedrock can be 74 million years old, in eastern Iowa Cambrian bedrock dates to c. 500 million years ago.[16]

Iowa is generally not flat; most of the state consists of rolling hills. Iowa can be divided into eight landforms based on glaciation, soils, topography, and river drainage.[17]Loess hills lie along the western border of the state, some of which are several hundred feet thick.[18] Northeast Iowa along the Mississippi River is part of the Driftless Zone, consisting of steep hills and valleys which appear almost mountainous.

Ecology and environment

Iowa's natural vegetation is tallgrass prairie and savanna in upland areas, with dense forest and wetlands in flood plains and protected river valleys, and pothole wetlands in northern prairie areas.[17] Most of Iowa is used for agriculture; crops cover 60% of the state, grasslands (mostly pasture and hay with some prairie and wetland) cover 30%, and forests cover 7%; urban areas and water cover another 1% each.[20]

The explosion in the number of high-density livestock facilities in Iowa has led to increased rural water contamination and a decline in air quality.[25] Other factors negatively affecting Iowa's environment include the extensive use of older coal-fired power plants,[26] fertilizer and pesticide runoff from crop production,[27] and diminishment of the Jordan Aquifer.[28]

Spring ushers in the beginning of the severe weather season. Iowa averages about 50 days of thunderstorm activity per year.[29] The 30 year annual average Tornadoes in Iowa is 47.[30] In 2008, twelve people were killed by tornadoes in Iowa, making it the deadliest year since 1968 and also the second most tornadoes in a year with 105, matching the total from 2001.[31]

Iowa summers are known for heat and humidity, with daytime temperatures often near 90 °F (32 °C) and sometimes exceeding 100 °F (38 °C). Average winters in the state have been known to drop well below freezing, even dropping below −18 °F (−28 °C). Iowa's all-time hottest temperature of 118 °F (48 °C) was recorded at Keokuk on July 20, 1934; the all-time lowest temperature of −47 °F (−44 °C) was recorded at Elkader on February 3, 1996.

Monthly Normal High and Low Temperatures For Various Iowa Cities (°F)[32]

Iowa has a relatively smooth gradient of varying precipitation across the state, with areas in the southeast of the state receiving an average of over 38 inches (97 cm) of rain annually, and the northwest of the state receiving less than 28 inches (71 cm).[38] The pattern of precipitation across Iowa is seasonal, with more rain falling in the summer months. In Des Moines, roughly in the center of the state, over two-thirds of the 34.72 inches (88.2 cm) of rain falls from April through September, and about half of the average annual precipitation falls from May through August.[39]

Prehistory

When American Indians first arrived in what is now Iowa more than 13,000 years ago, they were hunters and gatherers living in a Pleistocene glacial landscape. By the time European explorers visited Iowa, American Indians were largely settled farmers with complex economic, social, and political systems. This transformation happened gradually. During the Archaic period (10,500–2,800 years ago), American Indians adapted to local environments and ecosystems, slowly becoming more sedentary as populations increased.[40]

More than 3,000 years ago, during the Late Archaic period, American Indians in Iowa began utilizing domesticated plants. The subsequent Woodland period saw an increased reliance on agriculture and social complexity, with increased use of mounds, ceramics, and specialized subsistence. During the Late Prehistoric period (beginning about AD 900) increased use of maize and social changes led to social flourishing and nucleated settlements.[40]

The arrival of European trade goods and diseases in the Protohistoric period led to dramatic population shifts and economic and social upheaval, with the arrival of new tribes and early European explorers and traders. There were numerous Indian tribes living in Iowa at the time of early European exploration. Tribes which were probably descendants of the prehistoric Oneota include the Dakota, Ho-Chunk, Ioway, and Otoe. Tribes which arrived in Iowa in the late prehistoric or protohistoric periods include the Illiniwek, Meskwaki, Omaha, and Sauk.[40]

History

Early exploration and trade, 1673–1808

Iowa in 1718. Modern state area highlighted.

The first known European explorers to document Iowa were Jacques Marquette and Louis Jolliet who traveled the Mississippi River in 1673 documenting several Indian villages on the Iowa side.[41][42] The area of Iowa was claimed for France and remained a French territory until 1763. The French, before their impending defeat in the French and Indian War, transferred ownership to their ally, Spain.[43] Spain practiced very loose control over the Iowa region, granting trading licenses to French and British traders, who established trading posts along the Mississippi and Des Moines Rivers.[41]

After the 1803 Louisiana Purchase, Iowa was placed under United States control. Much of Iowa was mapped by Zebulon Pike in 1805,[45] but it was not until the construction of Fort Madison in 1808 that the U.S. established tenuous military control over the region.[46]

War of 1812 and unstable U.S. control

Fort Madison was built to control trade and establish U.S. dominance over the Upper Mississippi, but it was poorly designed and disliked by the Sauk and Ho-Chunk, many of whom allied with the British, who had not abandoned claims to the territory.[46][47] Fort Madison was defeated by British-supported Indians in 1813 during the War of 1812, and Fort Shelby in Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin, also fell to the British. Black Hawk took part in the siege of Fort Madison.[48][49]

Trade and Indian removal, 1814–1832

A map of Iowa Indian Territory Accessions.

The U.S. encouraged settlement of the east side of the Mississippi and removal of Indians to the west. Trade continued in furs and lead, but disease and forced population movement decimated Indian cultures and economies. A disputed 1804 treaty between Quashquame and William Henry Harrison that surrendered much of Illinois to the U.S. enraged many Sauk and led to the 1832 Black Hawk War. As punishment for the uprising, and as part of a larger settlement strategy, treaties were subsequently designed to remove all Indians from Iowa.

The Sauk and Meskwaki were pushed out of the Mississippi valley in 1832, out of the Iowa River valley in 1843, and out of Iowa altogether in 1846. Many Meskwaki later returned to Iowa and settled near Tama, Iowa; the Meskwaki Settlement remains to this day. In 1856 the Iowa Legislature passed an unprecedented act allowing the Meskawki to purchase the land; Indians were not usually permitted to do so. The Ho-Chunk were removed from Iowa in 1850, and the Dakota were removed by the late 1850s. Western Iowa around modern Council Bluffs was used as a way station for other tribes being moved west, including the Potawatomi.

Almost immediately after achieving territorial status, a clamor arose for statehood. On December 28, 1846, Iowa became the 29th state in the Union when President James K. Polk signed Iowa's admission bill into law. Once admitted to the Union, the state's boundary issues resolved, and most of its land purchased from the Indians, Iowa set its direction to development and organized campaigns for settlers and investors, boasting the young frontier state's rich farmlands, fine citizens, free and open society, and good government.[53]

Iowa has a long tradition of state and county fairs. The first and second Iowa State Fairs were held in the more developed eastern part of the state at Fairfield. The first fair was held October 25–27, 1854, at a cost of around $323. Thereafter, the fair moved to locations closer to the center of the state and in 1886 found a permanent home in Des Moines. The State Fair has been held every year since except for the year 1898 due to the Spanish–American War and the World's Fair being held in nearby Omaha, Nebraska. The fair was also a World War II wartime casualty from 1942–1945.[54]

Civil War, 1861–1865

Iowa supported the Union during the Civil War, voting heavily for Abraham Lincoln, though there was a strong antiwar "Copperhead" movement among settlers of southern origins and among Catholics. There were no battles in the state, although the battle of Athens, Missouri, 1861, was fought just across the Des Moines River from Croton, Iowa, and shots from the battle landed in Iowa. Iowa sent large supplies of food to the armies and the eastern cities.[55]

Much of Iowa's support for the Union can be attributed to Samuel J. Kirkwood, its first wartime governor. Of a total population of 675,000, about 116,000 men were subjected to military duty. Iowa contributed proportionately more men to Civil War military service than did any other state, north or south, sending more than 75,000 volunteers to the armed forces, over one-sixth of whom were killed before the Confederates surrendered at Appomattox.[55]

Most fought in the great campaigns in the Mississippi Valley and in the South.[56] Iowa troops fought at Wilson's Creek in Missouri, Pea Ridge in Arkansas, Forts Henry and Donelson, Shiloh, Chattanooga, Chickamauga, Missionary Ridge, and Rossville Gap as well as Vicksburg, Iuka, and Corinth. They served with the Army of the Potomoc in Virginia and fought under Union General Philip Sheridan in the Shenandoah Valley. Many died and were buried at Andersonville. They marched on General Nathaniel Banks' ill-starred expedition to the Red River. Twenty-seven Iowans have been awarded the Medal of Honor, the highest military decoration awarded by the United States government, which was first awarded in the Civil War.[57]

Agricultural expansion, 1865–1930

Iowa farm, 1875.

Following the Civil War, Iowa's population continued to grow dramatically, from 674,913 people in 1860 to 1,194,020 in 1870. The introduction of railroads in the 1850s and 1860s transformed Iowa into a major agricultural producer.

In 1917, the United States entered World War I and farmers as well as all Iowans experienced a wartime economy. For farmers, the change was significant. Since the beginning of the war in 1914, Iowa farmers had experienced economic prosperity. In the economic sector, Iowa also has undergone considerable change. Beginning with the first farm-related industries developed in the 1870s, Iowa has experienced a gradual increase in the number of business and manufacturing operations.

Depression, World War II, and the rise of manufacturing, 1930–1985[edit]

The transition from an agricultural economy to a mixed economy happened slowly. The Great Depression and World War II accelerated the shift away from smallholder farming to larger farms, and began a trend of urbanization that continues. The period since World War II has witnessed a particular increase in manufacturing operations. While agriculture continued to be the state's dominant industry, Iowans also produce a wide variety of products including refrigerators, washing machines, fountain pens, farm implements, and food products.

The Farm Crisis of the 1980s caused a major recession in Iowa, causing poverty not seen since the Depression.[58] The crisis spurred a major population decline in Iowa that lasted a decade.[59]

After bottoming out in the 1980s, Iowa's economy began to become increasingly less dependent on agriculture, and by the early 21st century was characterized by a mix of manufacturing, biotechnology, finance and insurance services, and government services.[60] The population of Iowa has increased at a faster rate than the U.S. as a whole,[59] and Iowa now has a predominantly urban population.[61] The Iowa Economic Development Authority, created in 2011 has replaced the Iowa Department of Economic Development and its annual reports are a source of economic information.[62]

Of the residents of Iowa, 72.2% were born in Iowa, 23.2% were born in a different US state, 0.5% were born in Puerto Rico, U.S. Island areas, or born abroad to American parent(s), and 4.1% were foreign born.[66]

As of 2015, Iowa had an estimated population of 3,123,899, which is an increase of 16,773 people or 0.56%, from the prior year and an increase of 77,544 or 2.55%, since the year 2010. This is the first time the state has topped the three million mark in population. Iowa is the 30th most populated state in the country.[67] In 2007, the latest demographic information available shows that the state had a natural increase of 53,706 people in population from the last census (that is 197,163 births minus 143,457 deaths) and a decrease of 11,754 due to net migration of people out of the state.

Immigration from outside the United States resulted in a net increase of 29,386 people, while migration within the country produced a net loss of 41,140 people. 6.5% of Iowa's population were reported as under the age of five, 22.6% under 18, and 14.7% were 65 or older. Males made up approximately 49.6% of the population.[68] The population density of the state is 52.7 people per square mile.[69] The center of population of Iowa is located in Marshall County, in the city of Marshalltown.[68]

Race and ancestry

According to the 2010 Census, 91.3% of the population was White (88.7% non-Hispanic white), 2.9% was Black or African American, 0.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.7% Asian, 0.1% Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander, 1.8% from two or more races. 5.0% of the total population was of Hispanic or Latino origin (they may be of any race).[70]

Iowa's population included about 97,000 foreign-born (3.3%).[68] Iowans are mostly of Western European descent. The five largest ancestry groups in Iowa are: German (35.7%), Irish (13.5%), English (9.5%), American (6.6%), and Norwegian (5.7%).

Rural to urban population shift

Percent population changes by counties in Iowa, 2000–2009. Dark green counties have gains of more than 5%.[74]

Iowa's population is more urban than rural, with 61 percent living in urban areas in 2000, a trend that began in the early 20th century.[61] Urban counties in Iowa grew 8.5% from 2000 to 2008, while rural counties declined by 4.2%.[76] The shift from rural to urban has caused population increases in more urbanized counties such as Dallas, Johnson, Linn, Polk, and Scott, at the expense of more rural counties.[77]

Another demographic problem for Iowa is the brain drain, in which educated young adults leave the state in search of better prospects in higher education or employment. During the 1990s, Iowa had the second highest exodus rate for single, educated young adults, second only to North Dakota.[79] Significant loss of educated young people contributes to economic stagnation and the loss of services for remaining citizens.

The study Religious Congregations & Membership: 2000[82] found that in the southernmost two tiers of Iowa counties and in other counties in the center of the state, the largest religious group was the United Methodist Church; in the northeast part of the state, including Dubuque and Linn counties (where Cedar Rapids is located), the Catholic Church was the largest; and in ten counties, including three in the northern tier, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America was the largest. The study also found rapid growth in Evangelical Christian denominations. Dubuque is home to a Catholic archdiocese, which spans the northeastern section of Iowa.

After English, Spanish is the second-most-common language spoken in Iowa, with 120,000 people in Iowa of Hispanic or Latino origin[88] and 47,000 people born in Latin America.[89] The third-most-common language is German, spoken by 17,000 people in Iowa;[84] two notable German dialects used in Iowa include Amana German spoken around the Amana Colonies, and Pennsylvania German, spoken among the Amish in Iowa. The Babel Proclamation of 1918 banned the speaking of German in public. Around Pella, residents of Dutch descent once spoke the Pella Dutch dialect.

Statewide

RAGBRAI – the Register's Annual Great Bike Ride Across Iowa – attracts thousands of bicyclists and support personnel. It has crossed the state on various routes each year since 1973. Iowa is home to more than 70 wineries,[91] and hosts five regional wine tasting trails.[92] Many Iowa communities hold farmers' markets during warmer months; these are typically weekly events, but larger cities can host multiple markets.[93]

Economy

CNBC's list of "Top States for Business in 2010" has recognized Iowa as the sixth best state in the nation. Scored in 10 individual categories, Iowa was ranked 1st when it came to the "Cost of Doing Business"; this includes all taxes, utility costs, and other costs associated with doing business. Iowa was also ranked 10th in "Economy", 12th in "Business Friendliness", 16th in "Education", 17th in both "Cost of Living" and "Quality of Life", 20th in "Workforce", 29th in "Technology and Innovation", 32nd in "Transportation" and the lowest ranking was 36th in "Access to Capital".[94]

While Iowa is often viewed as a farming state, in reality agriculture is a small portion of a diversified economy, with manufacturing, biotechnology, finance and insurance services, and government services contributing substantially to Iowa's economy.[60] This economic diversity has helped Iowa weather the late 2000s recession better than most states, with unemployment substantially lower than the rest of the nation.[96][97]

If the economy is measured by gross domestic product, in 2005 Iowa's GDP was about US $124 billion.[98] If measured by gross state product, for 2005 it was US $113.5 billion.[99] Its per capita income for 2006 was US $23,340.[99]

On July 2, 2009, Standard and Poor's rated the state of Iowa's credit as AAA (the highest of its credit ratings, held by only 11 U.S. state governments).[100]

Manufacturing

Manufacturing is the largest sector of Iowa's economy, with $20.8 billion (21%) of Iowa's 2003 gross state product. Major manufacturing sectors include food processing, heavy machinery, and agricultural chemicals. Sixteen percent of Iowa's workforce is dedicated to manufacturing.[60]

Food processing is the largest component of manufacturing. Besides processed food, industrial outputs include machinery, electric equipment, chemical products, publishing, and primary metals. Companies with direct or indirect processing facilities in Iowa include ConAgra Foods, Wells Blue Bunny, Barilla, Heinz, Tone's Spices, General Mills, and Quaker Oats. Meatpacker Tyson Foods has 11 locations, second only to its headquarter state Arkansas.[102]

Agriculture

Directly and indirectly, agriculture has been a major component of Iowa's economy. As of 2007 the direct production and sale of raw agricultural products contributed only about 3.5% of Iowa's gross state product.[103] In 2002 the total impact of the indirect role of agriculture in Iowa's economy, including agriculture-affiliated business, was calculated at 16.4% in terms of value added and 24.3% in terms of total output. This was lower than the economic impact of non-farm manufacturing, which accounted for 22.4% of total value added and 26.5% of total output.[104] Iowa's main agricultural products are hogs, corn, soybeans, oats, cattle, eggs, and dairy products. Iowa is the nation's largest producer of ethanol and corn and some years is the largest grower of soybeans as well. In 2008, the 92,600 farms in Iowa produced 19% of the nation's corn, 17% of the soybeans, 30% of the hogs, and 14% of the eggs.[105]

Mural in Mt. Ayr Post Office, "The Corn Parade" by Orr C. Fischer, commissioned as part of the New Deal.[106]

The Iowa Insurance Division "Annual report to the Iowa Governor and the Iowa Legislature" from November 2014 looked at the 95% of health insurers by premium, which are 10 companies. It found Wellmark Inc to dominate the 3 health insurance markets it examined (individual, small group and large group) at 52-67%.[112]:2 Wellmark HealthPlan of Iowa and Wellmark Inc had the highest risk-based capital percentages of all 10 providers at 1158% and 1132%, respectively.[112]:31 Rising RBC is an indication of profits.[112]:31

Ethanol production consumes approximately one-third of Iowa's corn production, and renewable fuels account for 8% of the state's gross domestic product. A total of 39 ethanol plants produced 3.1 billion US gallons (12,000,000 m3) of fuel in 2009.[114]

Renewable energy has become a major economic force in northern and western Iowa, with wind turbine electrical generation increasing exponentally since 1990.[7] In 2010, wind power in Iowa accounted for 15.4% of electrical energy produced, and 3675 megawatts of generating capacity had been installed at the end of the year.[115] Iowa ranked first of U.S. states in percentage of total power generated by wind and second in wind generating capacity behind Texas.[115] Major producers of turbines and components in Iowa include Acciona Energy of West Branch, TPI Composites of Newton, and Siemens Energy of Fort Madison.

Taxation

Iowa imposes taxes on net state income of individuals, estates, and trusts. There are currently nine income tax brackets, ranging from 0.36% to 8.98%. The state sales tax rate is 6%, with non-prepared food having no tax.[117] Iowa has one local option sales tax that may be imposed by counties after an election.[118] Property tax is levied on the taxable value of real property. Iowa has more than 2,000 taxing authorities. Most property is taxed by more than one taxing authority. The tax rate differs in each locality and is a composite of county, city or rural township, school district and special levies. Iowa allows its residents to deduct their federal income taxes from their state income taxes.[119]

The Code of Iowa contains Iowa's statutory laws. It is periodically updated by the Iowa Legislative Service Bureau, with a new edition published in odd-numbered years and a supplement published in even-numbered years.

After the 2010 census and the resulting redistricting, Iowa lost one seat, falling to 4 seats in the House of Representatives. Incumbent congressmen Leonard Boswell (D) and Tom Latham (R) ran against each other in the new Third District; Latham won. Steve King represented the old Fifth District.

As a result of the 2010 elections, each party controls one house of the Iowa General Assembly: the House has a Republican majority, while the Senate has a Democratic majority. Since the defeat of incumbent Democrat Chet Culver in 2010, Iowa's governor has been Republican Terry Branstad, who served as governor from 1983 to 1999. On December 14th, 2015, Branstad became the longest serving governor in US history, serving (at that time) 20 years, 11 months, and 3 days; eclipsing George Clinton (vice president), who served 21 years until 1804.[123]

Presidential caucus

The state gets considerable attention every four years because the Iowa caucus, gatherings of voters to select delegates to the state conventions, is the first presidential caucus in the country. The caucuses, held in January or February of the election year, involve people gathering in homes or public places and choosing their candidates, rather than casting secret ballots as is done in a presidential primary election. Along with the New Hampshire primary the following week, Iowa's caucuses have become the starting points for choosing the two major-party candidates for president.[125] The national and international media give Iowa and New Hampshire extensive attention, which gives Iowa voters leverage.[126] Those who enter the caucus race often expend enormous effort to reach voters in each of Iowa's 99 counties.

Civil rights

In the 19th century Iowa was among the earliest states to enact prohibitions against race discrimination, especially in education, but was slow to achieve full integration in the 20th century. In the very first decision of the Iowa Supreme Court – In Re the Matter of Ralph,[127] decided July 1839 – the Court rejected slavery in a decision that found that a slave named Ralph became free when he stepped on Iowa soil, 26 years before the end of the Civil War.[128] The state did away with racial barriers to marriage in 1851, more than 100 years before the U.S. Supreme Court would ban miscegenation statutes nationwide.[129]

The Iowa Supreme Court decided Clark v. The Board of Directors[130] in 1868, ruling that racially segregated "separate but equal" schools had no place in Iowa, 85 years before Brown v. Board of Education.[128] By 1875 a number of additional court rulings effectively ended segregation in Iowa schools.[131] Social and housing discrimination continued against Blacks at state universities until the 1950s.[132] The Court heard Coger v. The North Western Union Packet Co.[133] in 1873, ruling against racial discrimination in public accommodations 91 years before the U.S. Supreme Court reached the same decision.[128]

In 1884, the Iowa Civil Rights Act apparently outlawed discrimination by businesses, reading: "All persons within this state shall be entitled to the full and equal enjoyment of the accommodations, advantages, facilities, and privileges of inns, restaurants, chophouses, eating houses, lunch counters, and all other places where refreshments are served, public conveyances, barber shops, bathhouses, theaters, and all other places of amusement." However, the courts chose to narrowly apply this act, allowing de facto discrimination to continue.[134] Racial discrimination at public businesses was not deemed illegal until 1949, when the court ruled in State of Iowa v. Katz that businesses had to serve customers regardless of race; the case began when Edna Griffin was denied service at a Des Moines drugstore.[135] Full racial civil rights were codified under the Iowa Civil Rights Act of 1965.[136]

As with racial equality, Iowa was a vanguard in women's rights in the mid-19th century, but was slow to give women the right to vote. In 1847, the University of Iowa became the first public university in the U.S. to admit men and women on an equal basis.[137] In 1869, Iowa became the first state in the union to admit women to the practice of law, with the Court ruling that women may not be denied the right to practice law in Iowa and admitting Arabella A. Mansfield to the practice of law.[128] Several attempts to grant full voting rights to Iowa women were defeated between 1870 and 1919. In 1894 women were given "partial suffrage", which allowed them to vote on issues, but not for candidates. It was not until the Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution was ratified in 1920 that women had full suffrage in Iowa.[138] Although Iowa supported the Federal Equal Rights Amendment, in 1980 and 1992 Iowa voters rejected an Equal Rights Amendment to the state constitution.[139] Iowa did add the word "women" to the Iowa Constitution in 1998. After Amendment, it reads: "All men and women are, by nature, free and equal, and have certain inalienable rights — among which are those of enjoying and defending life and liberty, acquiring, possessing and protecting property, and pursuing and obtaining safety and happiness." [140]

Post-Civil Rights era court decisions in Iowa clarified and expanded citizens' rights. The landmark U.S. Supreme Court case Tinker v. Des Moines (1969) confirmed the right of students to express political views. The state's law criminalizing same-sex sexual activity was repealed in June 1976, 27 years before Lawrence v. Texas.

Education

Primary and secondary schools

Iowa is often credited with the start of the high school movement in the U.S. Around 1910, secondary schools as we know them today were established across the state, which was unprecedented at the time. As the high school movement gathered pace and went beyond Iowa, there was clear evidence of how more time spent in school led to greater income.

The four-year graduation rate for high schoolers was 90% in 2015.[146] The state has the top graduation rate in the nation.[147] Iowa has 365 school districts,[148] and has the 12th lowest student-to-teacher ratio of 13.8.[149] Teacher pay is ranked 42nd, with the average salary being $39,284.[149]

The Iowa State Board of Education works with the Iowa Department of Education to provide oversight, supervision, and support for the state's education system that includes all public elementary and secondary schools, nonpublic schools that receive state accreditation, area education agencies, community colleges, and teacher preparation programs. The State Board consists of ten members: nine voting members who are appointed by the governor for six-year terms and subject to Senate confirmation; and one nonvoting student member who serves a one-year term, also appointed by the governor. The Iowa Board of Educational Examiners is an autonomous board in control of teacher licensure standards and professional discipline; it has a majority of licensed teachers as members and is the oldest state educational board.

The Iowa Board of Regents is composed of nine citizen volunteers appointed by the governor to provide policymaking, coordination, and oversight of the state's public universities, two special K-12 schools, and affiliated centers.